On Thursday (April 28), the National Assembly of Panama (in Spanish: “Asamblea Nacional de Panamá”) approved (with a 40-0 vote) a bill that provides a regulatory framework for cryptoassets in the Central American nation.
According to a pair of tweets from the National Assembly sent out around 13:36 UTC on April 28, “Bill 697, which regulates the commercialization and use of cryptoactives, the issuance of digital value, the tokenization of precious metals and other goods, payment systems, and other provisions is approved in the second debate.”
The aim of Bill 697 is “to make the Republic of Panama compatible with the digital economy, the blockchain, crypto assets and the internet for the benefit of its inhabitants and the rest of the world. Proponents are the deputies Cenobia Vargas and Gabriel Silva.”
The bill’s sponsor Panamanian Congressman Gabriel Silva tweeted that this bill — assuming President Laurentino “Nito” Cortizo signs it into law — would help his country “become a hub of innovation and technology in Latin America”, helping to “create jobs and financial inclusion.”
According to Wikipedia, although “Panamanian currency is officially the balboa, fixed at a rate of 1:1 with the United States dollar since Panamanian independence in 1903,” in reality, “Panama is dollarized: U.S. dollars are legal tender and used for all paper currency.”
Per a report by CoinDesk published yesterday, Congressman Silva explained during a Twitter Spaces session that although this bill does not make Bitcoin legal tender in Panama, it does allow it to be used for payments, legalizes all kinds of crypto businesses, and exempts crypto from capital gains tax:
“We can’t just establish bitcoin because that will be unconstitutional and if it’s unconstitutional, then the project won’t happen.“
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed by the author, or any people mentioned in this article, are for informational purposes only, and they do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice. Investing in or trading cryptoassets comes with a risk of financial loss.
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